B.W. COOK -- The Crowd

Celebrity spies are reporting a large influx of the famous crowd

dining at Roy’s, Fashion Island. This past week alone, William Shatner

(Mr. Priceline.com) bought a Roy’s cookbook following dinner. Shatner did

not make an offer for the book, he paid the requested price.

Football legend Joe Montana confabbed with his agent over a bottle of

the prized Duckhorn ’98 merlot while Seattle Mariners’ shortstop Alex

Rodriguez (known as A-Rod) also did some agent schmoozing in Newport

Beach. Thanks to our very own local sports agent mega-star Leigh

Steinberg, the Orange Coast has become a mecca for the athletic set in

search of career advancement.

And speaking of sports stars, our very own tennis star Lindsay

Davenport was spotted dining out with friends. Davenport is a regular at

Roy’s.

Mr. Romance himself, Julio Igelesias was in town last week and dined

there with a party of five guests, including two very beautiful women

whose identities were not revealed. The restaurant sent over a large

plate consisting of lobster, pot stickers, butterfish, and Cantonese

style BBQ baby back ribs for the Igelsias gathering, all served with

sake. Waiters reported hearing singing coming from the parking valet

station later in the evening.

Now if that’s not enough celebrity for you, wait until you hear this

one. The television show “Blind Date,” a 2000 version of the “Dating

Game,” only decidedly more “in your face,” sent a young couple on a

Newport date that began with, what else, a water bike ride on the bay.

Isn’t that the perfect way to start a relationship?

Marina Water Sports provided the transportation, and apparently the

kids had a blast. Then, presumably following a change of clothing, it was

off to Roy’s for dinner on the lanai, with the best of the wine list and

four courses of Polynesian perfection. This was followed by a nightcap at

Muldoon’s Pub, also in Fashion Island. The show will air 6 p.m. Oct. 27

on the UPN Network, locally KCOP-TV Channel 13.

* * *

On a much more serious note, the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation of Orange

County raised $106,000 at the recent “La Dolce Vita” event staged at

Antonello Ristorante, South Coast Plaza Village.

The Sunday evening gathering honored the Myron Kanofsky family for

their valiant crusade against the disease. The Kanofsky commitment was

born out of the own tragic loss of their daughter, Sarah, to the dreaded

cystic fibrosis.

Organizers were thrilled to report that the evening brought in $40,000

more than last year, with 300 supporters giving of their time and

pocketbook to make a difference in honor of the Kanofskys, under the

leadership of event organizer Karen Hall.

* * *

The ladies luncheon circuit featured a spirited confab at the new Cafe

Pascal under the Bridge of the Gardens at South Coast Plaza this past

week. It was the inaugural luncheon for the donors, who are giving their

time, talent and their homes -- literally their homes -- for Corona del

Mar High School and Middle School PTA Home Tour 2000 on Tuesday.

Event co-chair Lynn McAlister joined fellow chair Lee Smith and South

Coast Plaza’s Billur Wallerich (my little Turkish Tornado) to host the

luncheon. Six families will open their doors to the curious to raise

funds for academic enrichment across the board, as well for such programs

as music and the arts in local schools.

For last-minute information or reservations, call Sherry Hover at

(949) 644-8027 or Lynn McAlister at (949) 673-4477. The Tuesday tour also

includes lunch provided by Cafe Jardin at Sherman Gardens, Corona del

Mar.

* THE CROWD appears Thursdays and Saturdays.